The critics from the left have weighed in (and continue to weigh in). Their
rants range from the absurd to the dishonest. "No blood for oil." "Drop
Bush, not bombs." "Down with American imperialism." "Save
Iraq from America." "America = tyrants." Such thought-provoking
snippets of wisdom remain lost on educated America (save for a few Democratic
presidential candidates).

But now we're beginning to hear an echo in Iraq. "Leave our country,
we want peace." "No to America, no to Saddam, no to tyranny." "The
Americans just want our oil." Indeed, the Iraqis have learned well from
their coaches in America.

It is rather odd that a people who suffered for decades under a brutal,
torturous regime would slap the hands of their liberators. How very strange
that the initial jubilation during those first minutes of freedom in Baghdad,
would fade so quickly to accusations and skepticism toward the United States
and its "intentions." Such resentment might be expected after a
longer duration of U.S. occupancy, yet this honeymoon ended more quickly
than a Hollywood marriage. All to the glee of the political left.

The failure of peace and democracy in Iraq has become the battle cry of
U.S. leftists. These are the folks who think that America has much to learn
from third-world socialists and dictators. After all, the way they see it,
Saddam Hussein's regime was hardly raping the earth's resources like Bush's
America. Rather, Saddam limited his raping to Iraqi women, which was a great
relief to the global warming alarmists at the United Nations.

As U.N. Chief Weapons Inspector, Hans Blix, told his core constituency
during an MTV interview: "To me the question of the environment is more
ominous than that of peace and war…I'm more worried about global warming
than I am of any major military conflict." It is in this regard that
leftists consider the United States the most evil country in the world.

Their slogans, rantings and disingenuous proclamations are not contained
by the borders of America. Europe hears them, Iraq hears them and the world
hears them. The left knows this, and they are eager to prey upon ignorance
and skepticism around the globe. Not content to work within the framework
of the U.S. population and political system, the left is actively cultivating
anti-American constituencies in the international community. They are doing
this because in today's world, pressure from other nations weighs heavily
on both the foreign and domestic policy decisions of the U.S. government.
If you can't convince a majority of freedom-loving Americans to join your
cause, then spark the anti-American ire of the rest of the world. This has
become the left's strategy in Iraq and the Middle East.

Every single Iraqi knows two things: fear government and hate America. This
is no fault of their own, just the result of a lifetime of iron fists and
brainwashing under the Hussein regime. The political left seeks to exploit
these sentiments. This strategy is not limited to the purple-haired, trust-fund
kids marching (or laying down as the case may be) in the streets.

When asked by CNN's Wolf Blitzer whether the Iraqi people were better off
now than they were under Saddam Hussein, Democratic presidential candidate
Howard Dean responded: "We don't know that yet. We don't know that yet,
Wolf. We still have a country whose city is mostly without electricity. We
have tumultuous occasions in the south where there is no clear governance.
We have a major city without clear governance." In other words: "Sure,
Saddam Hussein was no picnic, but wait until Iraq gets a dose American ‘imperialism'—they'll
long for the random beheadings." Howard Dean and his party know that
a short campaign in Iraq followed by democracy and peace in the region equals
political death for them. Therefore, they will do and say even the unthinkable
to prevent such a scenario.

To disagree with America's war in Iraq is certainly acceptable. However,
to employ speech intentionally designed to arouse Middle Eastern anger against
the United States is unconscionable. Equating Saddam's terror regime with
power outages does not make for honest discourse. Rather, it emboldens true
enemies of the U.S. to take direct action against American soldiers and citizens.
This is what the left wants. After all, such atrocities would add credibility
to their pre-war warnings and damage the "capitalist machine" they
so vehemently despise.

Those on the right would do well to examine the political animal that the
left has become. They have taken their campaign overseas in hopes of breeding
anti-American hatred—and it's working.